Scott Skiles: Elfrid Payton has already made improvements on jumper
From his lofty perch at Amway Center, new coach Scott Skiles is already seeing improvements in Elfrid Payton‘s jumper.
Elfrid Payton has already had a busy summer.
He spent part of it in Orlando before heading to his hometown in Louisiana to continue working and hold several basketball camps. By July 4, he should be back in Orlando for the Southwest Airlines Orlando Pro Summer League.
When he arrives, he might look like something of a different player. Not quite different. It is still a work in progress. But that progress might show.
New Magic head coach Scott Skiles was on The Chris Mannix Show on Sunday and revealed to the host, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated, Payton is already making some fundamental improvements to his jumper:
"He’s in here, he has made a commitment this summer to correct some technical issues with his shots—not get it behind his ear, get it out in front of him. He’s improved already. He knows how important it is. I mean the guy can get in the lane at will, imagine if he could consistently make an elbow jump shot off a pick-and-roll when they go under, and then eventually mix in a corner-3, which is a shot that guards need to make in the NBA. It’s really going to open up his game. But he is really working at it, and he’s got the ball out in front of him now. With summer league coming up. I don’t know if we’ll see the benefits of it yet because it’s awful soon, but it’s something. You’ve got to give him a lot of credit. There are guys that are self-conscious about it, and they’re not willing to put in the time to correct it, and he is. I’m excited for him, because I think he’s going to come back a much improved player."
Payton, quite famously at this point, struggled making jump shots. He shot 42.5 percent and 26.2 percent from beyond the arc. According to Basketball-Reference he was an icy 35.3 percent.
His jumper certainly needed a lot of work. He would release it inconsistently at the top of his jump. He would sometimes bring the ball back too far.
Payton’s most effective shot was his running floater which he really mastered. Whenever he got his shoulders square, it became pretty solidly consistent.
To take the next step in his career though, he needs to be able to make jumpers off the dribble. Defenses are already sagging completely off him. It is the next and obvious step in his game.
Skiles has already seen him putting in the work from his new office at Amway Center.
In the rest of the interview, Skiles does touch some on the team he is getting ready to take charge. He brings up the defensive rebounding stat and the need for the team to become a better defensive team and get stops to ignite the break. These were all things Skiles addressed at his introduction and the talking point remain.
The first big step for him will be introducing a new coaching staff and selecting a player with the fifth overall pick in the Draft on Thursday before Summer League begins a week later.
When the team gets together in early July, Payton will be a key part of what the Magic want to accomplish and see throughout the week. Hopefully by then, he will have some new found confidence in his jumper.